When surgical blades such as knifes, scalpels, cautery blades and the like are used in performing surgery, they often become soiled with particles of tissue, blood, or other matter. These materials can become firmly adhered to the blades and severely hinder their further use in surgery. In addition, any blood or tissue dried on to segments of the blades after surgery can be extremely difficult to remove and may prevent the proper sterilization of the blades. These problems have frequently been avoided by immediately wiping the blades with disposable gauze or other cleaning materials during surgery as the need arises. This procedure, however, requires that the surgeon or his assistant interrupt the surgery to clean the blades, using both hands and taking great care to avoid accidental cuts or injuries. Such a cleaning procedure is not only very disruptive to the surgery, but also requires a significant supply of readily accessible gauze sheets and a convenient place to dispose of the soiled gauze.
Attempts to solve this problem have included a device disclosed in U.S. patent No. 4,087,878, which required the surgeon to insert his blade into a casing through a slot to brush the blade against setae members and then scrape the blade against the reinforced edges of the slot as the blade was withdrawn. This device requires many different parts including a base, a hollow casing, setae arranged in a particular pattern, and a means for reinforcing the slot. The surgeon, in addition, must ensure that the '878 device is correctly aligned and that the soiled portion of the blade is carefully inserted through the proper part of the slot so that the blade is both brushed and scraped to obtain a complete cleaning action. Finally, this device, at times, must be used repeatedly to consistently and completely clean the soiled blades of all adhering tissue and blood.
Other cleaning devices are unsuitable for use with surgical blades as they would damage or dull the sharp edges of the blades or would not adequately clean the blades without a substantial disruption of the surgery. In addition, none of these devices are actually addressed to, suggest, or teach a solution to the problem of cleaning surgical blades. These devices also require the assembly of many different elements, including setae and rollers, before they may be put into practice. The other cleaning devices of this general type are disclosed in: Hall, U.S. Pat. No. 177,394 (1876); Maibaum, U.S. patent No. 885,497 (1908); Gregory, U.S. patent No. 1,732,467 (1924); Robideau, U.S. Pat. No. 1,901,262 (1933); Swift, U.S. Pat. No. 2,121,307 (1938); Calleo, U.S. Pat. No. 2,202,516 (1940); Chambless, U.S. Pat. No. 2,744,276 (1956); Blackburn, U.S. Pat. No. 3,428,988 (1969); Fink, U.S. Pat. No. 3,583,018 (1971); Hauschild, U.S. Pat. No. 3,761,984 (1973); Schabmuller, Dutch Pat. No. 57,351 (1946 ); Royer, French Pat. No. 975,037 (1950), Roze, British Pat. No. 290,641 (1928); and Rosselet, German Pat. No. 27,251 (1884).